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THE NEUTRALIZATION OF HAWAIIAuthor(s): EDWARD ATKINSONSource: The Advocate of Peace (1894-1920), Vol. 57, No. 6 (JUNE, 1895), pp. 125-127Published by: World Affairs InstituteStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20665309 .

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The

Advocate Of

Peace.

vol.lvii. BOSTON, JUNE, 1895. no. ?.

THE AMERICAN PEACE SOCIETY, Publishers,

no. 3 somerset street, boston, mass.

CONTENTS. PAGE

The Neutralization of Hawaii. Edward Atkinson . . 125

Annual Meeting of the American Peace Society. . . 127

Annual Report of the ^Directors of the American Peace

Society . I.127

Special Public Meeting.131 Editorials.132-135

Neutralization?A New Prophecy of European War? Ex-Senator Wilson of Iowa?The Death of Secre

tary Gresham.

Notes and Comments ....... 135-138 Meeting of the International Peace Bureau-Arbi tration Conference at Mohonk?Letter cf the Wo

men of England to their Sisters in France?Meeting at Guildhall, Cambridge?No vico w' s Reception by Lombard Peace Union?Prof. Headland on the Chinese?The Japanese Emperor and Peace?Henry Fourneau on the Destructiveness of War?Treaty between Japan and China?Nicaragua and Great Britain ?

Jingoism and Anglophobia ? Chile and

Bolivia?Norway and Sweden?Venezuela and Great Britain?Thirteenth Anniversary of National Tem

perance Society?Pan-American Congress of Religion and Education.

The Magazines and Papers..140-142 Springfield Republican?New York Sun ?North American Review?Outlook.

Events of the Month.142

THE NEUTRALIZATION OF HAWAII. by edward atkinson.

Address made at the annual public meeting of the American Peace Society, May 16, 1895.

Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Peace Society:

Somewhat to my own surprise I have found myself called upon toj?in your Society. I have been asked to

speak upon a subject which has impressed my imagination and which I have endeavored to put before the authorities of the land, namely, the possibility of making the Hawaiian or Sandwich Islands the sanctuary of the great commerce of the Pacific Ocean in which u God's Peace"

may be kept as it was in the sanctuaries of old time. Is it not possible that there may be one little spot in the

great waste of waters where "the ships that pass from this land to that, weaving the web of concord among the

nations," shall find a harbor of refuge where no danger may await them from the land and where no hostile shot shall be fired upon the seas which belong to this domain ?

I believe that the general impression about what I may now call our Society is an erroneous one. I do not under stand that in joining any one declares himself to be a non-resistant or even a non-combatant. I do not conceive

that you deny the meed of honor and of highest praise to all those who laid down their lives or sacrificed their

property or their health in the active war by which the continuous but passive war of slavery was ended. On the other hand, I know that there are none among you whose "American Ideal" ?to quote a title from a recent

magazine ? is so low as to put the conduct of war on a

higher plane than the conduct of peace. I do not myself believe that the true American Ideal is so limited, so narrow, so unconsciously childish, as to put the motive of civil service and civil life below that of military service ; how it can happen that a student and an observer also, of

high executive talent, should so utterly fail in the want of

appreciation of the very object of his own best work is

beyond my own comprehension. The American Ideal is the highest,

? it aims at peace, good-will and plenty. The true American holds that the only incentive to or justification of any war on our

part is that we may conquer disorder and wrong and by so doing establish peace, order and industry, to the end that in the great commerce among men and nations each

may serve the other's need. We may admit that it is necessary for us to construct

and maintain a navy in order to be able to right the wrongs of our citizens even by force, when they are oppressed by the barbarous or by the semi-civilized nations and States

that are under the curse of militarism or are still governed by military caste. Yet we need not degrade our navy by calling our vessels "commerce destroyers" when their

true function is that of commerce protectors. Again, when it is desirable to know the origin of one

of the most striking incidents in the history of this country, making for peace and for a closer union with our mother

country, one would naturally turn to the men who occupy the highest national positions in the service of the State, especially to one who assumes the position of " the scholar in politics," but when one turns to the senior Senator of

Massachusetts for a reply to any question upon the subject which I am about to place before you, he might only be bold that under the Reciprocity Treaty with Canada, which so fortunately existed during the whole period of

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126 THE ADVOCATE OF PEACE. June,

our Civil War, we had only given to our neighbors an

opportunity to conduct an industrial war upon us in a

dangerous effort on their part to destroy our domestic in

dustry. Leaving out of view the material service which was rendered us in those evil times by Canada in supply ing our wants with food, fuel and fibres, one may well re

member that during that long period when the very life of the nation was at stake, we needed not one single ship of war to watch the dominant harbor of Halifax and not one single regiment to guard our long northern frontier of three thousand miles ; such were the ties which held us

together in the bonds of mutual service, nearly free from

legal obstruction. If one then turned to the junior Senator and asked the

question why we were forbidden to keep a naval force

upon the Great Lakes and why we were not permitted to

put an armed vessel of our navy on exhibition at Chicago ;

substituting a model made of brick and anchored to the shore ; fitted mainly with wooden guns ; what reply could we expect? If he followed the perverted politics to a

logical conclusion, of which the theory is to be found in his recent speeches and letters, he could only reply that the agreement which forbade the exhibition of a naval force on the Great Lakes should at once be ended and that we ought to waste our money in preparation to meet force by force even on these inland waters.

Yet in our relations with our neighbors of the Canadian Dominion is to be found the precedent for the policy which I shall presently bring to your attention.

We may, as I have said, give highest honor to the officers of our army and our navy ?perhaps yet more to the privates in our Civil War who, without hope of con

spicuous position or reward, sacrificed themselves in order that we may enjoy peace. We may be well assured that among men of all ranks who served in that war we shall find support for every measure that makes for per

manent peace, order and industry. None more certain

to act upon the principle that the only justification of war in modern times is the attainment and the enforcement of

peace. The "Jingo" policy of our political partisans is advocated merely by those who would be wholly safe from"

dangerous service if their policy were adopted. The greatest step in progress towards the maintenance

of peace, which is I believe without precedent in history, is to be found in the origin of our present relations with the Dominion of Canada, marred as they have been to some extent by the abrogation of the Treaty of Reciprocity. The unfortunate and misdirected War of 1812 between this and the mother country was fought for maintaining our peaceful rights upon the seas and to secure the privi ege of exchanging our products with other countries, free from aggressive interference. In one of the several

undertakings of that war complete success was attained ?

the naval power of Great Britain upon the Great Lakes was almost wholly destroyed ; complete supremacy and

command of the inland waters rested with us at the end of the war.

In the year of 1817, Mr. John Quincy Adams, then I believe Secretary of State, negotiating in England with Lord Castlereagh of the British War Office, proposed to him an agreement that both nations should disarm their naval force upon the Lakes. In pursuance of this

suggestion Mr. Charles Bagot, Ambassador in Wash

ington, stated to President Monroe in April, 1817, that this proposal had been made. Further communication was had upon the subject, President Monroe adopting the suggestions that "in order to lessen expenses and

guard against collision " this agreement might well be

entered upon, but a call was first made for a list of the armed ships of Great Britain then in existence on these waters. The correspondence continued through Richard

Rush, the Acting Secretary of State. Finally, on the 6th of April, 1818, President Monroe sent the form of

agreement which had been made with the British Foreign Office to the Senate of the United States, suggesting that if it were not deemed within the power of the Executive to make this agreement without legislation, suitable action might be taken. The Senate approved the agree ment and a little later a proclamation was issued by John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State, countersigned by James Monroe, the President, declaring the agree ment in force on the terms which have been held sacred from that date to the present time. Orders were given to dismantle all the armed ships of war remaining on the

Lakes, belonging to either nation. The only force per mitted thereafter and down to the present day is one revenue cutter on Lake Ontario, carrying one gun not

exceeding an eighteen pounder, one of the same type upon Lake Champlain and two upon the upper lakes.

Whether or not the commerce of these Lakes exceeds that of the Mediterranean Sea I know not, but this is a notable fact that the commerce which passes through the Sault Ste. Marie Canal uniting the Great Lakes by far exceeds that which passes through the Suez Canal ; yet under this Monroe Doctrine, which is " worthy of all ac

ceptation, " ?that " in order to lessen the expense and

guard against the danger of collision " both nations should

disarm,?that commerce is fully protected from violence and wrong as if millions of money were wasted upon naval armaments on the water and forts upon the shores. We may well commend this Monroe Doctrine to the

very junior Senator who now occupies a chair in the Senate

from Massachusetts. He may be held to fill that place

only when he shows a true comprehension of the relations of this country with our neighoring States. He?as well as

other Senators who now misrepresent other States in New

England?may be taught a lesson from the fathers like that sent down to us by Monroe and Adams, to the effect that

appeals to the hoodlum element in our population will

speedily bring contempt upon the man who makes them.

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1895. THE ADVOCATE OF PEACE. 127

Is there not a precedent in that agreement for the

policy which I now present in dealing with the Sandwich Islands ? What greater triumph could now be attained by the new power which has suddenly come to the front in the far East than for Japan to unite with the United States in justifying the name of the Pacific Ocean. In the middle of the great ocean, two thousand miles from

nearly every other land, lie these Sandwich or Hawaiian Islands. None of the great nations desire to assume the

responsibility of taking, arming and defending them ; none would like to see either one assume the power and

responsibility. All alike need for the conduct of their commerce the right to establish coaling stations, to land electric cables and to enjoy the benefits of their harbors of refuge.

Without taking up the question of the past or dealing with the rights or wrongs, of the native or of the foreign population, we now find an established government exist

ing which can be modified and changed under the pressure of public opinion so as to assure justice and equal rights without distinction of race, color or condition. What stands in the way of a compact among the great com

mercial nations? The United States and Japan joined with the British Empire, the German Empire, France, Russia and Italy, may establish the conditions which I

have presented to you. Argument is not needed in such a cause. The very suggestion carries its full force,?it would only be weakened by further discussion.

" Shall these things come to pass!?

Nay, if it be?alas -

A vision, let us sleep and dream it true !

Or sane and broad awake, For its great sound and sake,

Take it and make it Earth's, and peace ensue ! "

rowed, had been received during the year, and that the amount expended was $5,838.45, the balance in the

treasury being $150.65. The auditor reported that he had examined the Treasu

rer's accounts and found them correctly kept, with

proper vouchers for all moneys expended. The Annual Report of the Board of Directors, prepared

for them by the Seer-etary, was then read. Remarks

upon the report were made by Dr. A. A. Miner, Rev. J. S. Cogswell and Mr. Samuel L. Hartman. It was voted that the report be accepted and printed in the Advocate of Peace. (The report is given in full below.)

The report of the committee to nominate officers was then read and the persons named chosen for the coming year. (For the list see page 122.)

It was voted that the Executive Committee be authorized to select delegates to attend the Peace Congress to be held at Luxemburg in August.

The Secretary reported that the resolution adopted last

year had been forwarded to Ambassador Bayard, and that an appreciative letter, printed in the Advocate op Peace, had been received from Mr. Bayard acknowledging the

receipt of the resolution. The meeting adjourned at 4.45 p. m.

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTORS OF THE AMERICAN PEACE SOCIETY.

Mr. President and Members of the American Peace Society:

The Directors appointed by you at the Annual Meeting in May of last year respectfully submit the following re

port : It is our painful duty to record the loss to the Society

by death during the year of a number of honorable and valuable members including five Vice-Presidents and two

Directors, viz., Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, Hon. Fred erick Douglass, Senator James F. Wilson of Iowa, Dr. James E. Rhoads, Ex-President of Bryn Mawr College, Mr. T. B. Coolidge, Mr. Patrick McGrath, and Hon. A. B. Wentworth. Some of these had been long and gener ously connected with the Society's work, others were

among the foremost American advocates of peace and in ternational arbitration, and all in their different spheres had done good and faithful service. Since every reform rests ultimately upon the opinions and efforts of individual men and women, it is encouraging to see the number of the friends of peace everywhere increasing, new workers

coming forward to take the place of those who leave us. Several life members and annual members have been added to our list since the meeting last year.

OUR WORK.

The general work carried on by us during the year has been similar to that of former time. Regular meetings of our Board have been held every two months. They have

ANNUAL MEETING OF THE AMERICAN PEACE SOCIETY.

The sixty-seventh Annual Meeting of the American Peace Society was held in Pilgrim Hall, Congregational House, Boston, May 16, 1895, at 2.30 p. m.

In the absence of the President, Rev. Joseph S.

Cogswell, one of the Vice-Presidents of the Society, was called to the chair.

Prayer was offered by Rev. G. W. Stearns, after which a recording secretary was appointed and the minutes of the Annual Meeting held May 14, 1894, were read and

approved.

On motion the chair was authorized to appoint a com mittee to bring forward the names of officers to serve the

Society for the coming year. The chair named Rev C. B. Smith, Rev. G. W. Stearns, and Mr. . T. Allen, to constitute the committee.

The Treasurer's Report was then read and approved. The Report showed that $5,989.10, including $500 bor

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